Develop a Creative Strategy: Roast the Competition
What is the Roast the Competition Strategy and when should I use it?
It’s the strategy of choosing violence because your category is a sea of beige. Use it when your competitors are bloated, arrogant, or just plain boring. If everyone is saying the same "we care about you" nonsense, you step in and point out that their product tastes like sadness or their service is a joke. It’s high-risk because if you miss, you look like a bitter loser. But if you hit, you’re the cool kid at the party. Use it when you have a clear functional advantage or when the leader is too slow to punch back. Just don't be a jerk without a punchline. Strategy is a blood sport now, friend.
How to execute this strategy effectively
You don't just shout "they suck." That’s lazy. You find a specific, undeniable truth about their failure and turn it into a game. The goal is to make the audience feel smart for choosing you and slightly embarrassed for staying with them. You need a hook that feels like a prank, not a lawsuit. Keep the tone light enough to avoid looking desperate but sharp enough to draw blood. If you’re going to punch up, make sure your feet are planted. This strategy requires a brand voice that isn't afraid of a little heat. If your legal team is sweating, you are probably on the right track. Bingo.
Example: Burger King – "Whopper Detour" (2018)
Burger King’s "Whopper Detour" is the gold standard of strategic pettiness. They geofenced 14,000 McDonald’s locations, offering a 1-cent Whopper only if customers ordered it through the BK app while standing within 600 feet of a Golden Arches. It turned every McDonald’s into a BK billboard. It wasn't just a discount; it was a digital heist that forced the competition to watch their own customers walk away for a better deal. Genius, spiteful, and effective.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed in 4C Framework
Company INSIGHT
BK had a mobile app nobody used and a massive rival with way more locations. They needed a reason for people to download the app and use it.
Category INSIGHT
Fast food is a race to the bottom on price, where loyalty is non-existent and every brand claims to have the "best" burger.
Strategy:
Use the competitor's physical dominance as a trigger to drive app downloads through a high-stakes, hilarious value proposition.
Customer INSIGHT
Customers love a bargain and they love a prank. They were already visiting McDonald's out of habit, not because they actually loved the experience.
Culture INSIGHT
We live in a "troll or be trolled" culture where brands that act like humans—flaws and all—get more attention than those that act like robots.
Strategy:
Use the competitor's physical dominance as a trigger to drive app downloads through a high-stakes, hilarious value proposition.
Company INSIGHT
BK had a mobile app nobody used and a massive rival with way more locations. They needed a reason for people to download the app and use it.
Category INSIGHT
Fast food is a race to the bottom on price, where loyalty is non-existent and every brand claims to have the "best" burger.
Customer INSIGHT
Customers love a bargain and they love a prank. They were already visiting McDonald's out of habit, not because they actually loved the experience.
Culture INSIGHT
We live in a "troll or be trolled" culture where brands that act like humans—flaws and all—get more attention than those that act like robots.
Why is Roast the Competition a Great Strategy?
It works because humans are hardwired to watch a fight, especially when one side is actually funny.
It creates immediate, unignorable brand contrast.
People love seeing big brands get humbled.
It turns a boring purchase into entertainment.
Spite is a powerful motivator for engagement.
Most brands are too scared to say anything real. When you mock the competition, you signal that you’re confident enough to handle the blowback. It builds an "us vs. them" mentality that turns casual buyers into actual fans.
! When not to use the "Roast the Competition" Strategy
Do not use this strategy if your own product is actually worse, because getting dunked on in your own mentions is a special kind of hell you won't survive.
Steps to implement: How to punch up without breaking your hand.
Identify the giant’s most obvious, annoying flaw.
Find that one thing everyone hates about the market leader. Is their app slow? Is their coffee burnt? Is their pricing a scam? Don't go for the jugular yet; go for the pebble in their shoe. It has to be a shared frustration that your audience already feels. If nobody else cares, your roast will just sound like a sad, lonely scream into the void.
Weaponize their own footprint against them.
Like the Whopper Detour, use their physical or digital presence as your own playground. If they have more stores, use that density to trigger your own rewards. If they have a massive ad budget, hijack their hashtags. The goal is to make them pay for your marketing. Every time a customer sees their logo, they should be thinking about your much better offer instead.
Wrap the spite in a massive incentive.
Mockery is fun, but a deal is better. If you’re going to make people jump through hoops to spite the competition, make the reward worth the sweat. A one-cent burger is a reason to drive to a McDonald's just to leave it. Without a "holy crap" offer, you’re just a troll. With the offer, you’re a hero of the people. Don't be cheap here; buy the loyalty.
Keep the legal team in a dark room.
This strategy lives on the edge of a cease and desist. If you ask for permission, the answer is always no. Build the campaign, check the actual laws—not just the "brand guidelines"—and be ready to pivot if things get too spicy. A little bit of legal friction often makes for a better PR story anyway. Just don't actually break the law, you amateur.
Stick the landing and don't apologize.
Once the campaign drops, the competition might whine or try to clap back. Do not backtrack. Do not "clarify." Own the pettiness. The moment you apologize, you lose the "cool rebel" status and just look like a corporate bully who got scared. If you’re going to start a fight, make sure you’re the one standing there with a smirk when the dust finally settles.
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